Paranoid Hitsophrenic

Sunday, 5 May 2013

Rogue Transmissions - Mxrcxl - A Laughing Matter (album review)

A short while ago / Een kort tijdje geleden

I got a disc in the mail / Ik kreeg een disc in de mail

An unsolicited package / Een ongevraagde pakket

How on earth / Hoe op aarde

did this guy / Deed deze kerel

get my home address? / krijgen mijn huisadres

His name was Mxrcxl / zijn naam was Mxrcxl

so / dus

anyway / hoe dan ook

I played it / ik speelde het

And so it went. I'll admit, it's been one of the highlight thrills of my short time on this blog to receive this piece of mail with the name 'Paranoid Hitsophrenic' actually typed out onto the envelope. In the envelope was an insert, typed in the style above, briefly introducing and telling the story of the band. First off, if you were going to say the name of the band out loud, you'd say Marcel, the x's are there to spice things up and add a touch of madness ...

Musically, I wouldn't chalk this up on the stoner side of the ledger. I'd call it alternative or even indie rock, but that's not really accurate. It may be more properly labeled electro punk, but let's not get too caught up tagging this thing with labels. This is madhouse music. Prominent keyboards and a bold, dynamic vocal delivery set this band apart from the off. "I Will, You Won't" swaggers in boldly with a bright keyboard sound atop a thick bass groove showcasing highly developed dynamics giving way to some dark back alley atmospherics. The song travels to some epic places and crescendos in a near panic attack of keyboard-tightened intensity.

Things really gel together for the band on "I Forgot to Smile", a song which jogs down a frantic road toward the dark woods of self-examination. Keyboards come to the fore, staying busier thoughout the track, while being treated as a lead instrument for the first time on this EP. As always Marcel's deep, face-ripping bass holds down the fort, sounding menacing as always, all the more so for the bright accompaniment that glides atop as counterpoint. "Photographs" has an almost "Strawberry Fields Forever" feel to the keys which sound mellotron-y for their flutiness. All told, this is a strong EP because just as the band really establish themselves they get out of dodge, leaving the listener wanting more.

Lead man Marcel comes across vocally as a Mad Hatter or Cheshire Cat like figure conducting mad tea parties or mystifying strangers from tall branches as necessary. His is the kind of infectious madness that most people would deign to avoid, the kind of madness that possesses him to send out surprise promo copies to strange folks such as the one that can be found sitting on the other side of your screen here. Luckily for him and his three bandmates, madness is as much a thing to be avoided here at the Paranoid Hitsophrenic HQ as is having a face, two arms, two legs and a covering of skin. It's the call of nature, a sacred duty, a sworn oath to crawl along the edges of normality, to lift the corner of reality and say "well, what have we here?"

As a kindred spirit, it's only fitting that Mxrcxl has made me question my own reality with 'A Laughing Matter'. The first time I listened to the disc I thought, "I'm not sure about this." The second time I played it I thought "Oh okay, I get it. This is pretty good". The third time I played it ... well my thoughts turned to ash and I was blown to bits by this band's energy and dynamism. And that's why this is a Rogue Transmission.

Highlights include: "I Forgot to Smile" and "Photographs"

Rating: 4/5

Total Run Time: 17:31

Mark - Guitar
Jasper - Keys
Lion - Drums
Marcel - Vocals / Bass

From: Rotterdam, Netherlands

Genre: Alternative Rock, Indie Rock, Industrial

Reminds me of: Filter, Roxy Music, Satellite Beaver

Release Date: March 19, 2013

Suggested listening activity for fellow non-stoners: A mad tea party, what else?

Better Reviews:
Stoner Hive
Loud Stuff

Mxrcxl facebook

Mxrcxl official website

Saturday, 4 May 2013

Geezer - Gage EP (album review)

One of my favorite new discoveries over the winter was Geezer's 'Handmade Heavy Blues' album (you can check out the review I did for Stoner Hive here). It was just as the album title suggests, dirty and rude electrified blues from the fuzzissippi river, with vocalist Pat Harrington paving just the right gravelly road for the music to ramble on. Well my paranoios, the Geezer is back, his electric beard a little longer, the clothes a little dustier and maybe just a little more out of fashion with the youngsters, and that's just how we like it around here. This four song EP features three new studio songs and a live improv recording. For more detail, refer to this interview Harrington did with Temple of Perdition during which he discussed the origins of this EP (see question 7).

For those proud owners of 'Handmade Heavy Blues', we know what to expect here, so I won't bore you with the details of this EP, it's more of what you expect from this band ... But hold on ... (sound of record scratching) ... something's going on here musically. Has the Geezer doffed his ancient stained and faded grandpa shirt, straw hat, dusty boots, corn-cob pipe and suspenders for a tattered band t-shirt, denim vest with patches and filth encrusted bong? Well the question actually becomes twofold and the answer to both questions is yes and no and yes and no. Let me explain ...

The opening track, "Ancient Song" is a swirling downtempo song that can only be categorized as stoner rock. It was recorded for this Grip of Delusion compilation and the other two new studio songs were cut during the same session. I guarantee you the song and its appearance on this compilation will win the band some new admirers. Initially, it's a surprising departure from the band's familiar sweaty blues sound, but not so far from home that the sound is shocking. It's certainly an interesting extension of the band's sound that sees them travel from the soggy and humid river delta to the arid desert. Is this the new direction the band is taking from now on, leaving behind the beloved blues? Well, the thing is, it's not really leaving the blues behind. Like most rock music, be it stoner rock or whatever, the song finds its origins in the blues, Geezer of course, keeps the roots a little closer to the surface.

"Thorny" is up next, mixing slide guitar with blown out stoned vibes for a slow stomper. It's the perfect soundtrack to a highway cruise through farm country at sundown. A hybrid of sorts, it proves that the band may have taken on some new influences and some new substances, but they don't forget where they've come from. "Ghost Rider Solar Plexus" pours forth from the same smoke cloud, sowing a stoner patch onto the back of a solid blues vest, while opening up the throttle for the most uptempo sounds on this disc. An insane solo featuring some of the most otherworldly tones I've ever heard adds to the intensity of the ride and the intensity of the buzz.

So has the geezer changed his musty old clothes entirely? No, but he has made some additions to the wardrobe, adding a layer of warmth atop those dusty old work clothes. I don't think that the sounds that confront the listener here are what I was expecting to hear, but as a fan of the band I'm not disappointed by the slide the band has taken in the stoner direction.

The closest comparison one can make here is to The Rolling Stones and the evolution of that band, the sound blossoming from the wrinkled and cracked hands of trad blues to gradually blooming into full blown psychedelia. Geezer's transition slightly mirrors that of the Stones with the major difference being that substance of currency, changing from acid to weed, so the music grows from psychedelic to stoner, so that's that.

Okay, so we've made a mountain out of this molehill of the band's expanded influences. Is it a worthy entry into the field of stoner rock? Absolutely. More than worthy. In fact, I might say I'm downright excited to hear what comes next. And that's coming from a fan of the band. I'd go so far as to say the three new studio songs here make the perfect soundtrack for backwoods travels down dusty tracks of highway under the blaring sun.

Geezer will be playing alongside such stoned heavyweights as Lord Fowl, Borracho, Lo-Pan, Supermachine and Gozu among others at The Eye of the Stoned Goat 3 festival at the Acheron in Brooklyn, New York on July 27. The first 50 ticket buyers were given a copy of this EP as an incentive giveaway package. Once those puppies moved it was made available to the rest of us slobs on bandcamp for FREE DOWNLOAD. On a related note, 'Handmade Heavy Blues' will be released in October by Blues Blvd. Records out of Belgium. Look for it! What that means however, is that the album will no longer be available for download on bandcamp, except with the purchase of a CD, until those quantities run out. It would be cool to pick one up as it has now been made collectible as a 'first print' kind of thing.

Highlights include: "Ancient Song" and "Ghost Rider Solar Plexus"

Rating: 4.5/5

Total Run Time: 22:24

From: Kingston, New York

Genre: Stoner Rock, Blues

Reminds me of: Rolling Stones

Release Date: May 1, 2013

Suggested listening activity for fellow non-stoners: Ridin' down the highway through the country, the sun spins in the sky creating a warm blanket of light. When that happens, pull over to the side of the road and press play.

Geezer facebook

Hour of Power 05/04/13 (playlist)

Angel of Death [live] (Slayer / Still Reigning DVD) 2004
Asteroid [live] (Satellite Beaver) 04/25/2013
Cloak of Feathers (The Sword / Apocryphon) 2012
Banzai! (Barbara & Los Rotos Del Rock) 2012
Iron Man new album teaser 2013
Come Back Life (Kadavar / Abra Kadavar) 2013
Blackest of Times (Apostles of Solitude / Demo 2012) 2012 ***
Ten Lizardmen & One Pocketknife (Devil To Pay / Fate Is Your Muse) 2013
Rebecca At The Well (Revelation / Inner Harbor) 2013
Doomraiser / Caronte split trailer 2013
Feel My Grace (Miss Lava / Red Supergiant) 2012
Rumors of War (High on Fire / Death Is This Communion) 2007 'classic video'
Seasons in the Abyss (Slayer / Seasons in the Abyss) 1990

*** Special thanks to The Obelisk for premiering this video this week

Doom Charts for 05/04/13

Top 25 Songs

#). Song Title (artist/album)

Warrior Woman (Corsair / Ghosts of Proxima Centauri)
Lifestream (Blizaro / Blak Majicians)
Highflyer (Eternal Elysium / Highflyer EP)
La Ley Del Dolor (Cultura Tres / Rezando al Miedo)
Signed, Epstein's Mom (Gozu / The Fury of a Patient Man)
Polygon of Eyes (Scorpion Child / ST)
Leaning on a Bear (Purson / The Circle & The Blue Door)
Tower of Silence (Cathedral / The Last Spire)
Widow Stone (Sonic Mass / single)
Sinister Gleams (Abysmal Grief / Feretri)
Stone (Alice in Chains / The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here)
Solution (Supermachine / ST)
Rain on the Highway (Geezer / Handmade Heavy Blues)
Final Escape (Amaxa / ST)
Money Shot (Early Mammal / Horror at Pleasure)
Dancing With My Demons (Chains / 7" single)*
Weather Breeder (Neon Warship / ST)
Savage Dancer (Black Moth / 7" single)*
Wash His Bones (Dead River / ST)
Great Leader (Giza / Future Ruins)
Crux To Bear (Across Tundras / Split LP w/ Lark's Tongue)*
Death March (The Gates of Slumber / Stormcrow)
Cryogenics (Utah / ST)*
Kärsimyksen tie (Musta Risti / ST)*
Silverwing (Sideburn / IV Monument)*

* New Song

Outgoing songs:
Ride (Miss Lava / Red Supergiant)
Restless Wanderer (Devil / Gather The Sinners)
Enter the Void (Tsar Bomba / Silent Queen)
Astral Sabbat (Jess & The Ancient Ones / Astral Sabbat EP)
Big Bad Wolf (The Gentlemen Bastards / ST)
Corpus Earthling (Midnight Zombie Alligator / Nova Sico)

Top 30 Albums
#). artist - album title

Tentacle - Ingot Eye
Devil - Gather The Sinners
Blizaro - Blak Majicians
Beastwars - Blood Becomes Fire
Kröwnn - Hyborian Age
Cultura Tres - Rezando Al Miedo
Grave Disgrace - Triumphant & Militant Church
Weed Priest - ST
Crag Dweller - Magic Dust
Tsar Bomba - Silent Queen
Black Pyramid - Adversarial
March The Desert - ST
Green Shade - ... Bright Interlude
Shinin' Shade - SAT-URN
Void of Sleep - Tales Between Reality & Madness
Sideburn - IV Monument
Devil To Pay - Fate Is Your Muse
Gates of Slumber - Stormcrow EP
Revelation - Inner Harbor
Iron Hearse - Get In The Hearse
Moss - Horrible Night
Head of the Demon - ST
Miss Lava - Red Supergiant
Mothership - ST
Bretus - In Onirica
Cardinals Folly - Strange Conflicts of the Past
Cathedral - The Last Spire
Geezer - Gage EP
Zodiac - ST
Machine / Sungrazer - split album

Friday, 3 May 2013

Chad Davis / Hour Of 13 official press release 5-3-2013 (News)

And now, a message from Chad Davis of Hour of 13:

I am grateful for all of the support eveyone has shown for Ho13, and honored to have been able to bring everyone quality music to a very thriving and revitalized movement. It has been extremely trying over the years, the constant interchanging of personnel, missing out on great opportunities to move the band further to all of you in a live setting, internal strife and conflicts of interest. But, in hindsight, things happened the way they have, and it is pointless to dwell on the past. The future is now...

I am glad to announce that new material will be created to carry the Ho13 namesake into the next phase of it's existence. A much needed break and rest from all of it was a good souce of medicine, healing the mind and allowing me to be able to refocus energy back into this musical force. Ho13 has always been an amazing outlet for me, a magnificent way to incorporate all of the influences that had helped me sharpen my craft.

A recent interview with Phil Swanson was posted on a rather small blog, in which he made some very bold statements. I am not here to defend myself or counteract anything he may feel towards Ho13 or myself directly. His point of view is entirely his own prerogative. In an attempt to not discredit his persona, his ideas are quite far from reality. My reality. So, with that said, I wish him nothing but the best in any musical endeavor he may embark on. A talented vocaslist he is, but he is NOT the be-all-end-all of Ho13.

In closing, the only thanks I can extend is once again to all of you. The fans. You have helped us more than anything. The music is for you. And I am extending to you guys the longevity of this band until the finality comes. Thank all of you!!

Regards,
Chad Davis

Thursday, 2 May 2013

Revelation - Inner Harbor (album review)

Revelation are veterans of the genre. Forming in the mid eighties as a traditional doom metal band and naming themselves after the Trouble song, the band has gradually become more progressive with the passing of time. For twenty years or more they have been a bright light in the vibrant Maryland doom scene, Inner Harbor is their seventh full-length album and first since 2009's 'For the Sake of No One'.

'Inner Harbor' opens with some groove, a nice funky riff that puts a glide in the stride and a dip in the hip, before spilling out onto the slow and fat doomy riff that closes the title track. This is how Revelation operates, they let the funk flow like maple syrup, never straying too far from their doomed roots.

John Brenner's keyboards take songs such as "Terribilita" and "Rebecca at the Well" to a time and place when bands were trying to update their sound and take rock music in a more progressive direction. Ironically, these effects more often than not dated those old albums severely but it gives Revelation's music a distinctly retro flavor. This isn't a bad thing. The two tracks mentioned above in particular stand next to Black Sabbath's 'Sabotage' in terms of quality and at other times reminding of Pink Floyd's 'Wish You Were Here' album in terms of texture and tone. The keyboards on "Jones Falls" tends to remind me of the keyboards on Sabbath's 'Never Say Die' album, having that same surprising, striking counterpoint feel. That's just the thing with the keys on this album, they are used as counterpoint and never drive the song, they get their time in the sun but never end up overshadowing, however because of their striking nature and vibrant tone the keys leave a long-lasting impression.

"Rebecca at the Well" is one of the heaviest songs ever, made more so by the fact that it's surrounded by five songs that rely less on heaviness and more on competent and intelligent playing, dynamics and quality to get their point across. This song's got those factors in spades as well and is a true standout. Overdosing on low end rumble, the listener is taken to chambers of melodic tritone leads and tension building prog dungeons that have more than a touch of Dawn of the Dead (1978) feel, all in one song that never loses sight of its starting point.

I first heard "Rebecca At the Well" on the Soggy Bog of Doom podcast way back in September. It's hard to believe it was over a half a year ago. Heavy, proggy and adventurous, it's not off the mark to say that all six songs on 'Inner Harbor' deliver 70s worship in a satisfying way, framed in doomy riffs and lazy melody. This album originally came out as a digital download in early October on Bland Hand Records, but has finally been released on CD by the good people at Shadow Kingdom Records. This album is loaded with 70s groove and proggy soundscapes. For doom heads who are also lovers of the most hirsute decade of all time and its soundtrack, this album can't be missed, there's no two ways about it.

Highlights include: "Rebecca At The Well" and "Terribilita"

Rating: 4/5

Total Run Time: 35:01

Steve Branagan - Drums
John Brenner - Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards
Bert Hall Jr. - Bass

From: Baltimore, Maryland

Genre: Prog, Doom

Reminds me of: Black Sabbath, Blizaro, Pink Floyd

Release Date: April 30, 2013

Suggested listening activity for fellow non-stoners: Shadow shamblin' and groove struttin'.

Better Review:
The Obelisk
Temple of Perdition
The Sleeping Shaman
Last Rites

Revelation on Encyclopedia Metallum
Revelation on facebook

Wednesday, 1 May 2013

Doom Charts for 05/01/13

BIG DOOM CHART NEWS:

The first ever 'official' doom chart will be going up on this space on June 1, exactly one month from today. What makes it so official? Basically I asked dozens of reviewers, radio hosts, label owners, and all around 'voices of the community' to submit a list, however long or short, of their current favorite albums. Nearly every part of the world is being represented in this effort and some 7 people from various countries have already submitted lists early. The results are interesting, encouraging and the support for this project has been overwhelming.

If you are a blogger, reviewer, label owner, radio host or all around 'voice' within the stoner, doom, psychedelic, sludge, etc. community and would like to take part in the Doom Charts project, please send an email to lucaswilliamklaukien@gmail.com or if you're on facebook you can message me here https://www.facebook.com/ParanoidHitsophrenic. I will send back details. For now, bang your head to this:

Top 25 Songs